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McAfee Application Control vs Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 8, 2026

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

McAfee Application Control
Ranking in Application Control
8th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange...
Ranking in Application Control
5th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
67
Ranking in other categories
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) (6th), Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) (8th), ZTNA as a Service (1st), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (2nd), Remote Browser Isolation (RBI) (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Application Control category, the mindshare of McAfee Application Control is 5.7%, down from 5.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform is 13.1%, up from 9.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Control Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform13.1%
McAfee Application Control5.7%
Other81.2%
Application Control
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer1437648 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Security Specialist at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Easy to configure, reliable, secure, and has good support
With some specific versions, we are experiencing some issues where the policy configuration has some problems with the parent and child processes. There have been problems with the relationship between the parent and child process, from time to time. I would like to see better reporting and alerting features in the future.
Vibin Thomas - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Team Lead - Content Security at Valuepoint Systems
Zero trust access has transformed remote connectivity and now simplifies secure app usage
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform, especially Zscaler Private Access, is very strong, though there are a few areas where improvements can be made. One challenge observed is around initial troubleshooting and visibility. While Zscaler Private Access provides logs, it can sometimes take time to pinpoint the exact cause of access issues, especially in complex environments with multiple policies and identity integration. Another area is the dependency on identity and connector health. Since Zscaler Private Access is heavily reliant on app connectors and identity providers, any issues with these components can impact user access, making proper monitoring critical. During the initial setup, policy configuration and application onboarding require careful planning, especially for larger environments with many applications. These challenges are manageable with proper design and monitoring. Overall, the platform delivers strong security and user experience. I would recommend a few improvements, especially around user interface, reporting, and troubleshooting experience. From a user interface perspective, while the platform is powerful, the policy configuration and navigation can feel complex, especially for new users. A more simplified and intuitive layout for policy mapping and application access would help reduce the learning curve. In terms of reporting, Zscaler Private Access provides logs, but having more built-in customizable dashboards and analytics would be very helpful. Better visibility into user access patterns, application performance, and real-time troubleshooting insights would improve operational efficiency. From a support and troubleshooting standpoint, it would be beneficial to have more granular centralized visibility, allowing for quick end-to-end tracing of a user request from authentication to application access without switching between multiple views. These improvements would make the platform even more efficient, especially for large-scale enterprise environments.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The most valuable feature is the whitelisting; I can test the applications and we can also predefine rules for Windows, rules for the application and control."
"This is a basic solution; the policy screen is okay, and it's easy to configure."
"It does its job well, and it's not causing a lot of trouble."
"We also like the Change Control. We can control how things get executed. It has signatures for different kinds of protocols."
"On DLP terms, Zscaler Cloud DLP ensures that data doesn't go outside of the organization. So on the network level, Zscaler does a pretty good job."
"The Live Logs are a cool feature. We can directly identify issues and divert user traffic."
"It has been helpful in maintaining our infrastructure. The granular level control it offers allows us to set application policies per application for each user."
"The product’s most valuable features are inbound and outbound scanning and API control."
"The platform offers advanced threat protection features and embedded AI/ML capabilities, making it more proactive in blocking threats."
"The solution is the best for storage."
"The agent's versatility is notable, used for digital experience monitoring to collect valuable endpoint metrics for troubleshooting."
"You can close your data protection gaps with Zscaler. You can quickly find all the classified, sensitive data across the cloud."
 

Cons

"I would like to see better reporting and alerting features in the future."
"With some specific versions, we are experiencing some issues where the policy configuration has some problems with the parent and child processes."
"The initial setup is not straightforward, it was complex. The manuals don't have all the information you need to deploy it."
"The intrusion detection features should also be improved. It is a very good feature but it should be maximized."
"Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform probably needs to be more efficient because scanning takes a lot of time. Some vulnerabilities create issues, and when we wanted to identify the source of the vulnerabilities, specifically focusing on mobile ID and related areas, it was unable to provide assistance."
"There could be a feature to view the VPN tunnel activities in terms of configuration."
"We have issues with the tool's maintenance and networking. It should be able to work in offline mode as well."
"Having a Zscaler-specific device could streamline this process and provide a more consistent user experience across diverse branches."
"In the next release, I would like to see RE2 Regex supported."
"User management can be improved."
"We often face performance and latency issues with Zscaler SASE."
"Zscaler Private Access needs to improve its collaboration with applications without compromising security."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"It has been relatively reasonable for what it does. Some of the additional license costs based on the advanced next-generation firewall functions are quite high, and they should have certain features ready and available as a baseline rather than having to purchase additional licenses for it. Overall, the cost seems reasonable."
"The price is competitive."
"Zscaler DLP solution is expensive, with a fixed pricing structure that is billed annually and monthly. There are no additional costs for licenses."
"The product is a bit expensive."
"In the long run, cloud services are not inherently costly."
"Zscaler Private Access can be an expensive solution, depending on the license type you will purchase."
"The solution has increased prices this year."
"There is definitely an ROI."
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913,683 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Outsourcing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise45
 

Questions from the Community

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What is the better solution - Prisma Access or Zscaler Private Access?
We looked into Prisma Access before choosing Zscaler Private Access (ZPA). Palo Alto’s Prisma Access is a secure access service edge (SASE) designed to deliver network security in a cloud-deliver...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zscaler Cloud Protection?
This is an area where I have candid feedback from our organization regarding pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform. Overall, I would assess the pricing as a si...
What needs improvement with Zscaler Cloud Protection?
After three years of working with Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform, I do have genuine feedback on areas where I feel there is room for improvement. The initial configuration complexity is one a...
 

Also Known As

McAfee Application, Change Control
Zscaler SASE, Zscaler DLP, Zscaler CASB, Zscaler CSPM, Zscaler Browser Isolation, Zscaler Posture Control
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Contec
Siemens, AutoNation, GE, NOV
Find out what your peers are saying about McAfee Application Control vs. Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
913,683 professionals have used our research since 2012.